Recently tourism appears to be an effective economic tool to enhance gender equality and women's empowerment. This study analyzed the gendered-oriented articles concerning the tourism sector in the MENA region. This study focused on the articles that used structured methods such as interviews, questionnaires, surveys, and observations. 203 articles were extracted from the Scopus and Web of Science databases and analyzed through six bibliometric analysis units: scientific production evolution, documents, authors, sources, countries and institutions, and keywords. The main results of this study can be summarized in two pivotal points: (i) the scientific production of articles concerning gender in the tourism sector in the MENA region is still inadequate and does not correspond to the current international and regional interest in achieving gender equality; (ii) among all the MENA region countries, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, and Oman were the most countries that have paid attention to gender in the the tourism articles.

The Butler Destination Life Cycle Model is one of the most prominent analytical tools used to understand the development and change of tourist destinations over time. The model is based on dividing the life cycle of a tourist destination into successive stages: exploration, emergence, development, consolidation, stagnation, and then deterioration or revival. This model helps identify the stages that a tourist destination goes through, providing tools to understand the economic, social, and environmental changes that may affect it. The importance of Butler’s model lies in the fact that it provides a comprehensive vision for the development and sustainability of tourist destinations by understanding the challenges that these destinations may face in their various stages. It also allows planners and tourism policy makers to understand strategies for adapting to changes and directing efforts towards enhancing sustainability and extending the life of the tourist destination. The reason for relying on it is due to the comprehensiveness of its stages and its flexibility in adapting to different geographical and economic contexts. Butler’s model is a powerful tool for understanding how tourist destinations develop considering the multiple factors that affect them, making it the ideal choice for analysing the stages of tourism life in many studies. The research provides a comprehensive vision of the theoretical framework of the model and the indicative factors in determining the life cycle of tourist destinations, then analyzing global experiences in applying that model, then attempting to apply it to tourist centers on the Red Sea coast and formulating policies and mechanisms reflected in the development of centers in each stage of the model.